Selfish Businesses Will Inevitably Fail

As a business, it's impossible to do anything amazing completely on your own. So being selfish (or stupid) is a bad way to attempt greatness.

Most of the time you really need other people to help you. You need support — financially emotionally, and physically. You need help with ideas and help making things happen. Sometimes that helps in the form of hiring a contractor or paying for professional services like an attorney, an architect, or a business strategist.

However you frame your situation or the goal you are trying to achieve, it is highly unlikely that you can do it all without anyone else helping you.

Admit it. You need other people's help.

Which begs the question why you would even think about running your business selfishly.

Don't use computerized phone directory systems that save you money but leave your customers wondering what number to push. It's good to have to hire more helpful people to help customers.

Don't send out support emails from a "do_no_treply@your_company.com" email address. That's just arrogant (and annoying). Have a person on your team be accountable for making customers feel awesome.

Don't hide your contact information or support email and phone numbers on your website. You can't hide from unhappy customers. And the ones that are still happy only stay happy if they get help fast.

Don't "check up" or "check in" on business deals that haven't closed yet. Surrender and stay away or re-engage with new value, big ideas, or ways to make it easy for them to do business with you.

Don't ask your sales team about "opportunities" or "prospects" or your marketing team about "lead score." Ask for names of companies and people whose world you can change for the better. Get personal.

Don't just send out newsletters and blogs noting all your latest (and greatest) ideas, products, and promotions. Deliver big ideas for free. Make it about the reader. Spend the time to make it interesting too.

Selfishness is what comes naturally. Thinking about you (and your business goals) first is what automatically happens.

But it also makes you stupid.

You miss the obvious. You lose sight of the opportunity for being amazing that is right under your nose.

Giving more is the key to growing more. It's the secret to building an empire that is indestructible — always conquering, regardless of the economic situation. People want to know that you care about them. If you can give them that feeling, they decide on their own to do business with you.

What comes naturally is to hedge your bets — to hold back and only give your best value to people when it serves your purposes first. But by then it's no longer the value that is needed. It's no longer giving at all.

It's just business as usual. And usual is selfish and stupid.

It's what got your business into this mess in the first place. While everyone else was tanking, you followed them and developed bad habits that now you can't seem to find your way around.

Change that. Give more.

The ways are limitless. Here are a few ways that your business can give more.

Give more focused time.

Give more appreciation.

Give more honesty.

Give more emotional support.

Give more gratitude.

Give more timeliness.

Give more respect.

Doing those things will be enough.

Not faking it. Not going through the motions. But genuinely giving time and respect and humility to your customers is the secret to propelling your business forward.